Corrugating machines



March 21, 1961 R. M. NEFF 2,975,817

CORRUGATING MACHINES Filed May 29, 1958 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 u i INVENTOR.

HIS ATTOB NEY March 21, 1961 R. M. NEFF 2,975,817

CORRUGATING MACHINES Filed May 29, 1958 s sheets-sheet 2 3 Sheets-Sheet3 INVENTOR. ROBERT NQ NEFF March 21, 1961 R. M NEFF CORRUGATING MACHINESFiled May 29, 1958 HIS .ATTORNEY L www? l 1| Kbb www@ m mi .5

:E IB: j? @2.25% t@ SU 1- United States Patentv F CORRUGATING MACHINESRobert M. Ned?, Dayton, Ohio, assigner to General Motors Corporation,Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Delaware Filed May 29, 1958, Ser. No.738,709

3 Claims. (Cl. 153-2) This invention pertains to corrugating machineryand especially to machines for simultaneously corrugating superimposedwire and strip material.

superimposed wire and strip material have beenl corrugated togetherbetween dies in a stamping operation.

This method was satisfactory for trial runs but is too slow andexpensive ttor high volume production.

It is an object of this invention to provide a machine for economicallysuperimposing a corrugating wire and strip material at a high rate andeconomically cutting the corrugated wire and strip material inpredetermined lengths.

It is another object of this invention to provide a simple, economicalmachine by which corrugations can be formed in superimposed wire andstrip material by a rolling operation.

These and other objects are attained in the machine disclosed in thedrawings in which wires are taken from a plurality of spools of wire andguided in parallel paths over a strip of metal and passed simultaneouslyover a plate and beneath a roll having a resilient surface. From thispoint, the wire and strip is fed between toothed corrugating rolls inwhich the teeth or projections squeeze the wire and the strip togetheragainst the alternate depressions to interlock the wire and strip as itis corrugated. The corrugated wire and strip so interlocked are fedbetween a toothed roller and a chain carrying blades which shape andcompact and form the corrugations into the nal shape desired. Thecorrugations then pass over a counter roll operating a counter controlmechanism which, in turn, controls a cut-olf operating mechanism whichautomatically cuts the interlocked corrugated wire and strip materialinto the lengths desired.

Further objects and advantages ofthe present invention will be apparentfrom the following description, reference being had to the accompanyingdrawings wherein a preferred embodiment of the present invention isclearly shown.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top view of the wire spool supply arrangement;

Figure 2 is an enlarged top view of one of the wire spools and itsrotatable supporting arrangement;

Figure 3 is a view, in elevation, of one of the wire spools and itsrotating support arrangement;

Figure 4 is an enlarged top view of the initial guide for the wires andthe strip material;

Figure 5 is a view in elevation, partly diagrammatic, showing the rstset of corrugating rolls and the feeding mechanism therefor; and

Figure 6 is a view in elevation extending as a continuation of Figure 5,partly diagrammatic, composed of the iinal compacting, forming, countingand cutting mechanism. n

Referring now to the drawing and more particularly to Figure l, there isshown a plurality of rows of wire spools each designated by thereference character 20. The rims 22, 24 of each spool 20 are supported,respecice tively, upon the grooved rollers 26, 28 and 30, 32. Therollers 26 and 30 are rotatably mounted upon each of the forward rods34, all of pvhich lare supported in the upper notches 36 of the side*`supports 38, as shown in Figure 3. The sets of rollers 28 and 32 arerotatably mounted upon each of the rearward rods 40 which are supportedin the lower notches 42 in the support 58. By this particulararrangement, when any of the spools 20 are empty, such a spool can bereadily replaced by a full spool without disturbing any of the otherspools. The

, forward rods 34 in front of the spools 20 are higher than the rods 40at the rear of the 'spools to compensate for the pull of the wire 44 asit is being pulled off or unwound from the respective spools 20.

Referring now more particularly to Figure 5, there is shown a support 46spaced from the group of wire spools 20 which rotatably supports a roll48 of strip metal which is rotatably mounted upon the axle 50. The strip52, in unwinding from the roll 48, passes over the guide roller 54 intothe slot 5 6 in the lower portion of the guide means 58 on top of thetable 60. The guide means 58 contains, in a layer above and parallel tothe horizontal slot 56, a horizontal series of parallel bores 62. One ofthe wires from one of the wire spools 20 passes through one of thesebores 62 directly over the strip 52 as it passes through its slot 56.The wires are arranged in a symmetrical path between the spools and therespective bores in the guide means 58, as shown in Figures 1 and 4.

On the table 60 at the left of the guide means 58 is a block 64containing a horizontal slot 66 through which passes the superimposedWires 44 and strip 52. The slot 66 has a at bottom surface 68 againstwhich is pressed the wires 44 and the strip 52 by a roller 70 having itsouter surface formed of resilient neoprene. roller 70 serves to hold thewires 44 and the strip material 52 irmly in contact. In the event thatone of the spools has all the wire drawn from it, the starting end ofthe wire -of the new spool is passed through its bore in the respectiveguide and under the roller 70. The roller 70 is rotatably mounted uponthe shaft 72. The roller 70` may have its surface layer of any suitableelastomeric material such as natural or synthetic rubber in addition tothe neoprene previously mentioned.

The wires are fed through a second guide member 74 also mounted upon thetable 60, having between it and thetable 60 a lower horizontal slot 76through which the strip 52 passes. This slot 76 is formed between theguide and the adjacent surface of the table 60 which is slightlyunder-cut to provide a portion of the slot. The guide 74 is alsoprovided with a plurality of parallel horizontal bores 78 through whichextend the different wires 44. The starting end of a spool of wire 20 isfed under the roller 70 and through one of the bores 78 when starting anew spool. The rotation of the roller 70 will move the wires 44 and thestrip 52 together uniformly, especially including a starting end of awire through the guide 74 to the first set of corrugating rolls.

The guide 74 guides the superimposed wires 44 and strip S2 in betweenthe first set of corrugating rolls. This includes the upper roll 80rotatably mounted on the Shaft 82, and a lower roll 84 rotatably mountedon the shaft 86. These rolls each have toothed projections 88 and 90,respectively, and depressions 92 and 94. The rolls 80 and 84 are eachprovided with gears 96 and 98 which mesh so as to cause the projectionsof each of the rolls to enter into the intervening depressions of theother roll in the'manner of ordinary intermeshing gears. The clearancebetween the projections 88, 90 and the depressions 94, 92 -at theirnearest positions at the point at which they cross the centerlinebetween the shafts or axles 82 and 86, is less than the total thicknessof the wire 44 and the strip 54, so that they are meshed andinterlocked. A folded strip 91 of felt is saturated with an oillubricant by capillary action from the lubricant in the pan 89 andapplies lubricant to the tips of the projections 93 asV they contact it.rIj'he inter-engagementof the projections and the depressions` at thesamer time. corrugate's'the superimposed wire and strip, as shown on theleft of Figure S. The meshing of the wire and the strip 44k and 52vtogether between the rollers 80k and 84pmvides suicient meshing andVinterlocking of the wires and theV strip so that they are held togetherfor further processing. The corrugating rolls80 and 84 are power drivenat a uniform ratevr and pull the wires 44 and the strip 52 from theirrespectivev spools androll beneath the roller 70 and through the guides.5S and 74. Theinterlocked wires and strips, corrugated to an angle` ofabout 45", pass frornthe rollers 80 and 84-l through the slotted guide121 extending horizontally to the left into Figure 6'.

I n Figure 6 there is provided a horizontal metal link chain 1,23operating around two horizontally spaced pinions 125 and'127- which arerotatably mounted on the shafts 129 i and v'1:31. The chain 123 carrieson each link a transversely extending blade 133 extending outwardly andhaving an outer end in the form of a projection of reduced sizeextending directly across the blade. At the end of the chain 123 nearestthe -guide 121 there is provided a gear Wheel 135 rotatably mounted onthe shaft 137. and meshing with the projections at the outer ends of theblades 133 as the corresponding links of the. chain'pass around theVpinion 127. The shaft 137` of the gear wheel 135. is parallel tothe axesof the pinions 125 and 127 and is located at an angle of about 135yrelative to the line of centers of the'pinons 125 and V12.7. The gearwheel 135 and .the corrugating wheels 80 and 84 are synchronized bybeing geared together by suitable gearing vsuch as the gears 139, 141and a connecting'. chain 1,43. The chain 123 is driven from the gear 139througha gear 140 meshing with a gear 128 on the shaft 131 which drivesthe .pinion 127 meshing with the chain 123. Y

The projections, at the ends ofthe blades 133 are shapedv so thatwhenfthey are'nioved to the horizontal position ofthe pathgof thechain123, they will form an exact founing diefor. the interiors of thefinal right anglesparallel sided corrugations of the superimposed wireand strip, as shown in FigureY 6.l As the `corrugated strip and Wiresare fed from the guide 121 between the gear wheel 135 and theprojections on the ends of the blades 133, they carry theV corrugationsbeneath the curved guide member 145 to the point where nthe,corrugations are'gathered together toform right angle corrugations overthe projections at theen'dswof the blades 13,3. This is accomplished bytheA arrangement by which the blades 133 formed integrallyor-,attachedto they links ofthe chain 123 becomelparallel in the horizontal pathsofkmovement of the chain 123. The blades 133- extend radially from theaxes of the shaftsv129 and 131 as they pass around the pinions 125 and127. The changing of the blades 133 from a radial position to a parallelposition as they pass from the pinion 127 brings kthe tops andbottoms ofthe corrugations together to form closely spaced right anglecorrugations, To further form and complete the formations of the rightangle corrugations, there is provided a heavy roller 147 mounted uponthe axle 149 which rotates in bearings 151 spring-pressed downwardly bythe springs 153. This arrangement causes the roller 147 to roll on thetips of the corrugations as they are held by the projections at the endsofthe blades 133 when they are in parallel side-by-side relationship.This rolling insures proper formation of the righ-t angle corrugationsof uniform size and shape. lThe inner surface of the chain u123 issupported by a table or plate 124 beneath the roller 147.

The corrugated wire and strip 155 isicarriedvoifthe tips lof the blades133 byan upwardly extending incline 157. This incline 157 feeds thecorrugatedwireandstrip corrugations or a predetermined rotation of thecounter wheel 159 through the connection 171, will render effective thesevering or cut-off operating mechanism 173 to.

cause the upper knife 175 to come down and shear the corrugated wire andstrip 1'55 in segments to the length desired. A lower knife. 177 isstationary and cooperates with the movable upper knife 175. The movableupper knife is provided with a spring mounted detent plate 179 carryingthe detent 181 which enters in between one set of corrugations tomomentarily hold the corrugated strip 155l during the shearingoperation. The'springmounted detent plate 179 is anchored onto the lowerend of the compression spring 183 having its upper end mounted on theL-shaped bracket 185 fastened to the upper shear 175.

Thus, `by this rolling type forming machine I am able to rapidlysuperimpose and corrugate the numerous wires 44 and the strip 52 inright anglecorru-gations and shear it in predetermined lengthsautomatically at a high rate. This produces the proper lengths` ofcorrugated wires and strip economically for succeeding assemblyoperations.

While Avthe lembodiment of the presentinvention as hereindisclosedconstitutes apreferred form, itis to be understood that other for-msmight be adopted.

What Ais claimed is as follows:

l. In a machine for corrugating metal wires and a metal strip together,guidemeans forA bringing the metal Wirespand the metalstrip together ina longitudinal relationship, c orrugating wheels having corrugatingprojections and depressions extending transversely to the wires andtheVstrip and interengaging each other for simultaneously corrugating thesuperimposed metal wires and metal strip in contact with each other, theprojections and depressions of the corrugating wheels when at theirnearest positions having clearance less than thecombined thickness ofthe wire and the strip to force the wires and the strip into intimateContact :at the tip of` each of the ridges of the corrugations in thewire and strip, and a roller located between said guide means and saidcorrugating wheels having a resilient surface pressing the wires againstthe `surface of the strip received from the guide means andsimultaneously contacting all the wires and the surface of the strip forproviding their simultaneous uniform` advancement.

2. In a machine for corrugating metal wires and a metal strip together,guide means for bringing the metal wires and the metal strip together ina longitudinal relationship, corrugating wheels having corrugatingprojectionsanddepression-s extending transversely-to the wires and thestrip and interengaging each other for simultaneously corrugating thesuperimposed metal wires and metal stripin contact with each other, the.projections and depressions'v of ythe corrugating wheels when at theirnearest positions having clearance l'essthan the combinedthicknessoffthe wire and the strip to force the wires and the strip intointimate-contacty at the tip ofV each of the ridges of the corrugationsin thewire and strip, and a roller locatedrbetween said. guide means andsaid corrugating wheels having a resilient` surface pressing the Awiresagainst the surface of the stripmeceived from the guide means andsimultaneously contacting all the wires and the surface of the strip forproviding their simultaneous uniform advancement, and a second guidemeans located between said rolle-r and said corruga'ting means forguiding the superimposed wires 'and the stripto and between ,thecorrugating wheels. i' 3. In a machine for corrugatng metal wires, andametal strip together, guide means for bringing the metal wires and themetal strip together in a longitudinal relationship, corrugating wheelshaving corrugating projections and depressions extending transversely tothe wires and the strip and interengaging each other for simultaneouslycorrugating the superimposed metal wires and metal strip in contact witheach other, the projections and depressions of the corrugating wheelswhen `at their nearest positions having clearance less than the combinedthickness of the wire and the strip to force the wires kand the stripinto intimate contact -at the tip of each of the ridges of thecorrugations in the wire and strip, a roller located between Said guidemeans and said corrugating wheels having a resilient surface pressingthe Wires against the surface of the strip received from the guide meansand simultaneously contacting all the Wires and the surface of the stripfor providing their simultaneous uniform advancement, and a supportingmeans located on the opposite side of said strip from said wires andsaid rolle-r.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,212,482 Harrison Jan. 16, 1917 1,640,147 Fedders et al. Aug. 23, 19271,886,581 Pitts Nov. 8, 1932 2,041,356 Kraft May 19, 1936 2,334,671Gibbons Nov. 16, 1943 2,735,520 Collins Feb. 21, 1956

